Frontiers of Change; Minister Habet at Glasgow University

While Climate Change Minister Orlando Habet gave the keynote address at the Belize-led REDD+ event this afternoon at the COP26, earlier today he was among a few ministers invited by the University of Glasgow for a forum on nature-based solutions as climate actions. Joining Minister Habet were participating ministers from Costa Rica, Peru, Suriname and Argentina.

Orlando Habet

Orlando Habet, Minister of Sustainable Development, Climate Change & Disaster Risk Manangement

“They were looking at what countries like ours have in place for restoration strategies, basically looking at our policies. And of course, our explanation was that Belize traditionally has had for many years about sixty percent of its territory covered in forests, we have about a hundred and fifteen, a hundred and seventeen protected areas over the whole country including land and sea. Also that many of these protected areas get assistance through the Protected Areas Conservation Trust which was established from some funding that comes from the tourism sector. And so explaining to them that we have come a long way. An agricultural-dependent country for many years and then we shifted into tourism, but because of the impact of climate change, because of the impacts of humans, the anthropogenic impact on the resources, on our God-given endowment for nature that we have done some damage, but there is always opportunity for restoration notwithstanding the fact that we have done our fair share, maybe more than our fair share.”